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Easter Songs Have Been Sung Ever Since Pagan Times

Even though Easter was originally a Pagan ceremony, it is now a central form of Christian worship and many other Christian festivals are dated according to the reference date of Easter. Easter is a time when churches around the world ring out with Easter songs, though not all Easter customs are Christian. In fact, the Easter songs that date back to ancient times were radiating in their simplicity and were the main source of inspiration for the popular hymns that came about much later.

Early Second Century Songs That Praised The Resurrection

There are Easter songs versions that date back to as early as the second century that praised the Resurrection, and from the fourth century, the magnificent Latin hymns related to Easter were full of praise and were sung at the lighting of the Easter candle. A popular Easter song is known as The Exultet, which is still sung in all Catholic churches during Easter, and though its origins are uncertain, has been attributed to Saint Jerome or to Saint Augustine.

In the eight century, Saint John Damascene was the author of beautiful Greek poems in honor of the Resurrection and these are found in present day liturgical services of the Greek Church and have even been translated into English. A notable Easter song from ancient times is “The Day of Resurrection” that is sung in its original text in Greek at midnight services of the Greek Church.

There are also a great number of wonderful Easter songs that date to the Middle Ages and the German song “Let Us All Be Glad” appeared in a song book in 1568. Apart from the great number of Easter songs that are sung in individual countries, there are also those Easter songs that are sung among all nations of the world. From Chinese Christians to Portuguese to Johann Wolfgang Goethe’s beautiful Faust, there is great variety in the Easter song as sung by these various nationalities.

Perhaps the most famous Easter song of modern times, the ‘Easter Parade’ composed by Irving Berlin is most in demand. Easter parties also call for special Easter songs and music stores are booming with sales of audio cassettes as well as CDs that have many different Easter bunny songs, which are popular among kids. Children love to memorize the words to such songs and even use them to participate in singing competitions held in schools during Easter springtime.

The Symbolic Meaning Of Easter Candles

Lighting the Easter candles, more commonly known as the “Paschal candle” is the most solemn moment in the Easter vigil held on the eve of Easter Sunday. During Maundy Thursday of that same week, the church becomes entirely dark after extinguishing all lit candles and lamps. On Black Saturday, a special kind of fire will be lit and blessed to symbolize the resurrection of Christ, whose light sends the darkness away.

From the blessed fire, the Easter candle will be the first to be lit and the one from which other lights obtain fire. The lit Easter candle represents the light of Christ that came into the world. After lighting the sacred candle, the deacon will chant the exultet – the Traditional Roman Catholic hymn intoned during Easter Vigil.

Modern Easter candles display the Greek letters of “alpha and omega” representing the beginning and the end, as well as the year specified at its base. Traditionally, grains of red incense are embedded into the candle to form a cross symbolizing the wounds of Christ in His side, feet and hands. The main material used in making these candles is beeswax, which signifies the sinless Jesus Christ formed in His mother’s womb. The wick symbolizes His humanity, while the flame represents His Divine Nature.

The Lighting Of Easter Candles

During the night of Holy Saturday, the deacon carries the Easter candle in procession throughout the dark church. He then lights up the candle, inscribes a cross, the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet (alpha and omega) as well as the current year. The deacon then chants the exultet and finally affixes the five red grains of incense.

The Easter candle is the most visible and largest item inside a church during the holy week. It is normally lighted every day during mass all throughout the Paschal season until the Thursday of Ascension.

In Rome, when the candle melts, the wax from the Easter candle is used in making little locket items, known as “Lamb of God” medals. These gold, heart-shaped lockets are embossed with a lamb and cross with a drop of the blessed wax.

For families and other people who cannot attend the Easter Vigil, they can still observe the lighting of the Easter candle by performing the ceremony inside their homes just after dark. However, your own Easter candle should be large enough because it would be lighted every meal for forty consecutive days.

Easter Sunday Marks The Resurrection Of Jesus Christ

Easter Sunday marks the resurrection of Jesus Christ and, according to the Bible, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb along with some of Jesus’ disciples only to find Jesus’ body gone and an empty tomb. Jesus then appeared to Mary and his disciples and spoke separately to them for the next forty days. He then departed forever, promising his disciples that he would send the Holy Spirit to let the disciples know that God would never leave them, and then ascended into heaven.

Easter Sunday is the day that Jesus Christ rose from death and He had told his disciples before his arrest that He would be crucified, and those three days later He would raise from the dead. The third day after Good Friday happened to be Easter Sunday. It has thus become customary for Christians around the world to gather on Easer Sunday for a Sunrise Service that takes place on a hillside to enable everyone to view the sun as it rises.

High Point Of Festivals

There are also many Christians that take part in an Easter vigil and they usually light a new fire outside a church on a Sunday morning and it is also normal for a Paschal candle to be lit to celebrate Christ’s wounds, and this is carried into the church where it is used to light candles held by worshippers. Easter Sunday is the high point of the festival and is celebrated with parties, gift-giving as well as a celebration to rejoice in the rising from the dead of Jesus Christ, and his eternal life thereafter.

The focus of celebrating Easter Sunday is the resurrection of Jesus Christ which is the fundamental principle, as well as belief, of Christianity, and it is well documented through historical facts. Christians believe that Jesus died for their sins on the Cross on Good Friday and thus celebrate Easter Sunday, as they are of the firm belief that only Jesus Christ can give eternal life as it was only He that was successful in overcoming death.

Western Christianity celebrates Easter on a Sunday, which is the first Sunday following the first full moon after the vernal equinox. It is thus common for Western churches to calculate the earliest possible date of Easter as March 22 and the latest possible date is April 25. The Orthodox, or Eastern Christianity, celebrates Easter on a Sunday between April 4th and May 8th, which is usually a week after the date of the Western Easter, though in some years these dates coincide. It is common for Christians to wear new clothes on Easter Sunday.

The exact date that Easter Sunday falls from year to year changes because it is based on the lunar calendar, but it is celebrated on the first Sunday after the full moon, on or later than March 21.